The post-mortems on the NDP’s federal election campaign continue to roll in. And it’s particularly a plus to see that there will be a systematic effort within the party itself to review the choices which led to the election results – both for better and for worse. In the meantime,
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Accidental Deliberations: Just Not Ready, Civil Rights Edition
So let’s get this straight: Ralph Goodale’s plan to address the unconstitutional civil rights intrusions imposed under Bill C-51 (which his party waved through in the face of widespread opposition) is…to leave them in place indefinitely while the Libs figure out what they can get away with keeping. Needless to
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Roderick Benns interviews Michael Clague about his work on a basic income dating back nearly fifty years. And Glen Pearson’s series of posts about a basic income is well worth a read. – Meanwhile, Julia Belluz interviews Sir Michael Marmot about the connection
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Saturday Morning Links
Assorted content for your weekend reading. – Emily Dugan writes about the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s finding that young UK adults are facing the worst economic prospects of the last several generations. And Betty Ann Adam reports on Charles Plante’s work on the value of a living wage, both
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Amy Goodman interviews Joseph Stiglitz about the corporate abuses the Trans-Pacific Partnership will allow to take priority over the public interest. And Stuart Trew and Scott Sinclair offer some suggestions to at least ensure that Canadians have an opportunity for meaningful review
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Tuesday Morning Links
This and that for your Tuesday reading. – Mike Barber highlights how Canada’s federal election campaign was dominated by messages pushed from the top down rather than citizens’ concerns. Erna Paris recognizes that we can’t afford to be complacent about the place of outright bigotry in shaping voters’ decisions. And
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On missed opportunities
As mentioned here, I’ll be adding over the next little while to an already-substantial set of views on the NDP’s choices which led to last week’s federal election results. But I’ll start by expanding on a point which I made briefly earlier in the campaign (at a time when it
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material to start your week. – Steven Klees notes that there’s no reason at all to think that corporatist policies labeled as “pro-growth” will do anything to help the poor – and indeed ample reason for doubt they actually encourage growth anywhere other than for the already-wealthy. And the
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Sunday Morning Links
This and that for your Sunday reading. – Les Leopold takes a look at the underpinnings of Bernie Sanders’ unexpectedly strong run for the Democratic presidential nomination. And Sean McElwee discusses the type of politics U.S. voters are rightly motivated to change, as big donors have been successful in dictating
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On ticking clocks
Governing inevitably involves a combination of setting the agenda to the extent possible, and responding to events to the extent necessary. And while there’s a great deal of doubt as to where the Libs’ priorities will lie, it’s possible to identify the areas where they’ll have little choice but to
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Friday Morning Links
Assorted content to end your week. – Martin Lukacs writes that while a change in government offers some possibility of change, the Trudeau campaign wasn’t anything more than a ruse. And Seth Klein and Shannon Daub remind us that we’ll need to be the ones to advance progressive policies in
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: New column day
Here (via PressReader), on how the prisoner’s dilemma I wrote about back here wound up playing out in Canada’s federal election. For further reading, particularly on the difference in how the NDP and the Libs treated each other… – Tonda MacCharles’ look behind the scenes of the Cons’ strategy includes
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Thursday Morning Links
This and that for your Thursday reading. – Eduardo Porter highlights the continued growth in research showing that social benefits do nothing to stop people from pursuing work, but instead serve to mitigate the risks of precarious survival for the people who need it most. – And Michael Marmot discusses
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On rush jobs
Yes, one of the Libs’ first orders of business in government should be to rein in the worst excesses of C-51. But they instead seem to be limiting their plans to something else entirely: A key feature of the replacement legislation is expected to be the creation of a multi-party, joint House of
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Wednesday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading. – Luke Savage warns that the Libs’ election win may ring hollow for Canadian progressives: Throughout its democratic history, Canadian politics have basically oscillated between two parties that do not seriously threaten the status quo or the injustices it perpetuates. Occasionally goaded by organized
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On defining themes
I’ve pointed out previously that the Libs’ advantage during the federal election came from the fact that the primary message against them was one which could be disproven. And it’s worth also noting the converse of that: the Libs’ own theme of “real change” was difficult for anybody to disprove
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: On clean slates
Needless to say, last night’s election results represented something close to the NDP’s worst-case scenario on a lot of fronts: both in terms of seat counts, and losing the seats held by some of the most impressive MPs and candidates in Canadian politics. And I’ll comment in future posts on
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: #elxn42 – Election Day Resources
For all the time spent on Canada’s federal election, it’s now time for voters to have their say. And anybody looking for basic information on where and how to vote should start with Elections Canada or a trusted local campaign. For anybody wanting to read up on the factors which
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: Monday Morning Links
Miscellaneous material for your election day reading. – Ed Finn discusses how neoliberalism is damaging Canada, and what we need to do to reverse its influence: Corporate influence on federal politics, the country’s flawed electoral system, and the staunch pursuit of a political and economic ideology since the 1980s that
Continue readingAccidental Deliberations: #elxn42 Campaign Closer: Liberals
Finally, let’s look at the Libs’ campaign as tomorrow’s election day approaches. In case there was any doubt, the Libs’ main challenge was to try to cast Justin Trudeau as being “ready” in response to the Cons’ saturation ad campaigns. And while Trudeau likely benefited from the lowered expectations created
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